Children of Earth

Well, I just sat and watched the whole of Children of Earth in a single marathon sitting. Feel the need to sum up my thoughts without being too detailed or complete.

In truth, it wasn’t bad, but it didn’t quite work in the end. You know the scenario that we’ve seen so many times before in this and other series – how do you deliver the finale that matches all the build-up? Well, when you destroy the Hub in the first episode, how do you keep ramping up the action?

Characterisation was good. Frobisher troubled, the new PM self-serving and spineless. Pushy Americans and spunky young women PAs… Check! Keeping the 456 out of sight ensured we weren’t disappointed… And it had all the temper tantrums and attacks of projectile nausea you expect from a TV drug addict extraterrestial.

Is Captain Jack becoming too tortured now? Perhaps. You have to wonder why we never heard about the Torchwood extended families before now… That sort of thing is so Russel T, after all. Wouldn’t that have been an ideal target for Jack’s enemies in the past – like Captain John?

The conclusion. Well, it worked and didn’t come across as too forced, as some Who conclusions have in the recent past. However, all the sacrifice and torment came in the same few episodes as it was established. We didn’t know Jack’s family before, so areas as traumatized by the events of the final episode as we might have been if we’d met them earlier? I don’t know. I suspect not.

In short, worth watching and still better than some of the first season dross. Hope this isn’t the last we see of Torchwood…